As an American living in the UK, I often get asked what it's like watching UK elections. The differences are quite wild, especially when comparing the constant election season in the United States to the United Kingdom’s approach to voting and elections. This YouTube video from the Hickson Diaries offers a laymen’s political analysis of the UK politics system, aiming to get the nuances of how elections work across the pond. Join me in my expat life POVas I provide an election explained from an American in England perspective on the disparities between the two systems. 🧡 Stuff I Use & Recommend As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. 🔗 Amazon items mentioned in this video: – An Officer Not A Gentleman by Mandy Hickson https://amzn.to/4tZDPLE – Flag Display Case. https://amzn.to/48ekY7m – Tim Curry Vagabond. https://amzn.to/4cXlh9a – Blue Yeti Nano Premium USB Mic. https://amzn.to/48ekY7m – Gaza: The Story of a Genocide by Fatima Bhutto. https://amzn.to/4tYpIpZ YouTube Video Chapters/Timestamps 00:00. Expat Life POV: US vs UK Elections 00:20 Expat Life POV: When US/UK Elections Happen 02:39 Expat Life POV: US vs UK Election Campaign Timelines 05:36 Expat Life POV: UK/US Election Campaign Finance 09:34 Expat Life POV: How Americans/British Vote 11:55 Expat Life POV: US President vs UK Prime Minister 13:59 Expat Life: American Expat POV & Key Takeaways 🪪 Click the join button below to become a member and support the Royal British Legion. More details at https://www.hicksondiaries.com/royal-british-legion-partnership 👉OTHER WAYS TO SUPPORT THE CHANNEL Can't commit to the £4.99/mo right now, no problem. There are other ways to offer your support. Consider sending a paid SuperChat during a live stream or buying me a coffee by clicking the "Thanks" while watching one of our videos. 😩NO SPARE CHANGE-NO PROBLEM Your support doesn't have to cost a thing. There's a ton of free ways to be part of our community & supporting us. If you haven't already, consider subscribing to the channel, clicking the notification bell, 🛎️ leaving comments (don't forget-I respond to every one-eventually) , participating in community posts, liking & sharing a video with a friend or on social media. Finally, simply watching our videos (and maybe re-watching your favorites a few times). All of these thing helps us be seen by new viewers. 😒DO THESE THINGS REALLY HELP? Yes, no matter how you support us, every interaction keeps us on the good side of the YouTube algorithm. Whatever you can do is greatly appreciated & I am so thankful that I have you as part of this community. I couldn't do it without you! (No seriously, if it weren't for this channel I would just be alone in my bedroom talking to myself.) ❤️THANK YOU FOR CHECKING US OUR & I HOPE I GET TO SPEAK TO YOU AGAIN SOON!❤️ ✉️ Subscribe to our FREE blog & newsletter @https://www.hicksondiaries.com/ 📧 Send Me Suggestions [email protected] 👀 Hickson Diaries viewers, be sure to check out and subscribe to our new YouTube channel Own Your Work for powerful tips & tricks as well as inspiring real life stories of how I survived 30 years of corporate life in the United States & the United Kingdom, and ended up running my own business. Find out how you can fight burnout and take back control of your career, own your work and live your best life. @OwnUrWork 🌟 Copyright Disclaimer © 2026 The Hickson Diaries/Mandy Hickson. All rights reserved. All content on this YouTube channel, including but not limited to videos, audio, visuals, text, graphics, and edits, is protected by copyright laws and international treaties. No part of this content may be reproduced, redistributed, transmitted, or reused in any form without prior written permission from the copyright owner, except as permitted by applicable law. ⚖️ Fair Use / Fair Dealing Notice This channel may include copyrighted material whose use has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Such use is made under the principles of fair use pursuant to Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act and fair dealing under the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as well as similar provisions in other jurisdictions. The use of copyrighted material is for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education, parody, or research. This content is intended to be transformative and does not substitute for the original work. If you believe any content on this channel infringes your copyright, please contact: [email protected] and the matter will be addressed promptly. #expatlife #hicksondiaries #livingabroad #election
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6 weeks is more than enough.
It's ironic that America has so much voting opportunity but so little democracy.
I remember the Girl gone London youtube channel saying the first time that she voted here in the UK she turned to her British husband and asked "do I get a sticker now?" And he replied "What are you four" 😂
Why on Earth would you need more than six weeks? Actually, why would you need more than a fortnight?
And on the actual day of the election... like today the 7th May... media cannot, by law, discuss the elections. They have to wait until the polls close at 10pm.
Hard to think of a worse system than in the US - it is totally undemocratic because of all the corruption.
Restriction of election spending is THE most important part of UK elections. There are loop-holes and abuses, but they are nothuge. Every party deserves equal hearing and I would die for that right, even as an apolitical Brit
On the world table of democracy the UK is ranked 17th and classified as a full democracy The USA is ranked at 28th and classified as a flawed democracy
The American system seems to rely on money, gerrymandering and mass advertising. Then you don't even to get to vote for a real candidate. I don't think that counts as a democracy.
16 Billion Dollars! Why does the USA bother with elections when it would be simpler to just auction the posts?
Six weeks is plenty. Something to remember is that we have a rule called purdah: during general election campaigns, the government isn't allowed to change policy or influence the civil service (with careful exceptions for emergencies). The civil service is, in turn, not allowed to make announcements or, on an individual level, express their political beliefs. This is to protect the elections from undue influence by the government. It would harm the governance of the country if this went on for too long.
In the UK people elections have to tske place within 5 years. While the formal campaign only last 6 weeks they informally go on for much longer. After the 6 weeks of intense campaigning everyone in the UK has had enough.
An important thing is that we don't have such a thing as gerrymandering in the UK. Elected officials don't get to choose to redistrict their area. And they don't get to draw or approve the maps. Redistricting is done when certain pre-existing thresholds are passed. And declaring it has to be done, and drawing the new borders is done by an independent body.
We were bought up to never discuss politics, religion or money. We keep it to ourselves which works well in the most part. Since social media things have become a little more divided but I still have no idea how much my friends earn or who they vote for. It's just taboo to ask.
In the UK there is usually a polling place within a mile of your house, usually a school (kids get the day off). When you go to vote it takes 5-10 minutes, no waiting in line all day and then the polling place shuts before you get a chance. Electoral boundaries are drawn by independent commission not by the politicians, so we don’t see the gerrymandering you’re currently seeing in the States. There’s no real transition period, the Prime Minister loses and they are out the next day and the new government takes over. We’re unlikely to get a Jan 6 type event here.
The best thing the USA could do would be to have a limit on spending; the amounts spent are obscene.
It used to be 20,000 years ago . It's now 70,000 . In 2005 a woman Labour MP was charged with over spending , was arrested , charged , went to court and was found guilty ( i'ts a criminal offence ). She was fined , resigned her seat . They had to have the election again and the Conservative party won the seat .
I still can’t get my head around around how you can become the president of the United States of America Without actually being a elected politician ( in general, not trump related ) Plus the money in American political campaigns is wild Plus the vitriol and language used against political opponents is obscene
Wait until the Australian election system is discovered: compulsory voting, voting on a Saturday, preferential voting, and importantly, the democracy sausage.
I love the fact that a bunch of Prime Ministers were booted out in quick succession, but life continued here as normal.